"Her magic was white?" Leora whispered. "That's bad."

Tara crossed her arms. "Do tell."

Leora fiddled with the bed cover. "Miranda's qi is usually blue, though sometimes it manifests as gold. White isn't a good colour for us."

The teenager yawned. "Uh-huh. Like how?"

Leora met her eyes gravely. "It's the colour of death, Tara. If her qi's changing now—"

Tara held her hands high. "Back up. Explain please."

Miranda's older sister sighed. "We're descended from a dragon and fox spirit, which already gives us powerful magic, but she's beyond that," she shared. "Miranda was born in the year of the tiger and…that affects her abilities too."

"How so?"

She swallowed. "It increases her capabilities and sensitivity. She's stronger than me, but she's more likely to become unstable."

The Everine briefly forgot her grumbling stomach. "What do you mean by 'unstable?'"

The Chinese Canadian tucked herself into bed. "Balance is extremely important in Chinese culture, especially in our family," she took off her glasses. "If we don't balance our warring sides, it can tear us apart. With my sister, the added qi from the tiger makes it harder for her to stay in control. Tigers and dragons are eternal rivals, so she…explodes?" Leora frowned. "I think that's the best word for it. The energy builds up inside of her, and if she doesn't let it run off she changes."

The Supreme Everine snorted. "So why didn't she let it run off?"

Leora didn't smile. "Trauma. Before she came to Europe her friend…it's a long story, but he died. She just shut herself down, burying all her pain and sadness instead of dealing with it, and that affected her magic. We thought the trip would be good for her, but I guess it only hid her meltdown from us."

Tara raised an eyebrow. "Meltdown?"

"When Miranda's powers start to overwhelm her she can't rationalize properly. She gives in to her darkest thoughts." Leora said. "She literally becomes a different person."

"So it's not her fault she's a jerk?!"

"Yep," She closed her eyes.

"Hey, we're not finished here!" Tara exclaimed. "What do you mean it's bad her magic's white? And why would we be in danger?"

The Chinese girl rolled over. "I'll elaborate once I sleep and you have breakfast. You're getting a lot more irritable without it."

Tara was annoyed, but ate silently at the table before stomping away.

Bella was still fast asleep in the living room, though she looked much better. The doorbell rang again, and Tara ended up answering it again.
"Who—?! Oh hi Sorsha," she greeted hesitantly.

Sorsha had tried to stop Esmeralda from killing her, but afterwards fell to the May's Shadow. She'd recovered, but once again was distancing herself from Seb, much to his distress, though she'd respond to his text messages once in a while.

"I heard your sister has returned," she spoke in her feathery voice. "Is she all right? My father didn't say much."

Tara snorted. "He shouldn't say anything at all! Hasn't he heard of doctor-patient confidentiality?"

The village girl simply shrugged. "How is…your brother?"

"Seb or Jake?" Tara retorted, then relented after seeing the spark of pain in her eyes. "Seb's hovering. I think he feels guilty, not that he's to blame."

It was true. Seb had scarfed down his food and bolted back to the living room, helping tend to Bella.

"Oh…" she fidgeted, uncertain. "Well…I guess I'll drop by later…"

"See ya," Tara shut the door immediately, feeling a little bad after seeing Sorsha's shocked face.

It wasn't selfish if she wanted Seb to have more time to put himself together, right? Sorsha was great, but family came first, and Tara knew Bella's return (and her strange condition) would be tearing him apart inside. It was better not to add onto that stress…right?`

Was she being overprotective of her brother?

Possibly.

Was she going to stop?

Unlikely.

It was for his own good. Tara vowed to keep Seb and Sorsha as far apart as possible.

"No!"

Tara was walking past Leora's room when she heard someone exclaim.

"I can't stop them, I'm sorry," This was a different voice. Tara could tell it was another girl.

"They are not touching my sister!" Leora hissed. "I won't let them."

"Leora, she's out of control. She burned you. She's never gone this far."

"That was a mistake, and I saw the look in her eyes," Leora was stubborn. "She regretted it."

"Regret didn't stop her from going kleptomaniac," the girl had a slight accent that Tara couldn't place. "Miranda's attracting too much attention."

"That's why I'm here!" Leora yawned at the end of her sentence. "Now let me sleep. Thanks for the warning."

Someone shifted uncomfortably. "Why would Miranda come back here? Why on earth would she kidnap that girl?"

Leora groaned. "Let me sleep! Seriously, I'm dead tired."

The other girl sighed. "Fine, but we still can't locate Ryder. We're not sure what happened to him after London."

There was a quiet huff of air. Leora threw herself into bed with a groan.
"Why do they keep interfering?" she muttered to herself.

Tara continued on her way, heading for the secret passage.

Great-Aunt Bridget sat in silence for about two minutes after Tara finished the narrative.
"The good news is Bella came back," Bridget finally said, causing her to jump.

"Right."

"But she was delivered by Miranda's sister."

"Yep."

"And she attributes Miranda's actions as to her not being herself?"
"Exactly," Tara fidgeted uncomfortably.

Bridget exhaled. "Well that's…interesting."

Tara scoffed. "She's probably lying."

"What makes you say that?"

The teenager's eyes widened. "She—she has to be! She's related to Miranda!"

Bridget frowned. "Since when was blood a determining factor for malevolence?"

Tara's eyes narrowed. "Miranda good as murdered Miss T!" She shouted. "She almost destroyed Evermoor!"

Her great aunt flinched. "You don't need to remind me," her voice was sad.

"What makes you think this 'sister' is any different?" Tara remarked vehemently. "She shows up with Bella in a comatose state, and that doesn't exactly make me trust her!"

There was silence. Tara's chest heaved as she inhaled huge gulps of air after her outburst.

"Your grief is blinding you," Great-Aunt Bridget spoke softly. "But!" She lifted one hand before Tara could launch a protest. "It never hurts to be cautious."

The Supreme Everine was somewhat mollified. "So what should we do?"

The older woman gave the teenager a hug. "Be patient," she advised. "Wait for Leora to wake up, then find out all you can."

Neither of them noticed a tiny field mouse in the corner. A hint of red flashed in its eyes before it chirped and scampered away.

Cameron was sitting outside the library, sighing. Tara trotted up to him, noticing the doors to the building were still locked.

"What's wrong?" She asked. He'd texted her as she was sneaking back home, and left the mansion to meet him later that afternoon.

He ran his hands through his hair. "They're going to close the library," Cameron was despondent. "Miss T still hasn't been found, and…no one wants to bother replacing her."

Tara gasped. "Oh Cameron…I'm so sorry."

Her boyfriend sighed ruefully. "I guess it was only a matter of time."

It had been Cameron who introduced her to the library and Miss T. He had taken her disappearance hard—he'd known the old woman since he was little. Tara didn't have the heart to tell him what really happened to the former Everine. She couldn't bear to crush the hope in his eyes.

"Books should be available for everyone," Tara muttered.

"I couldn't agree more."

A new voice chimed in, causing both teens to whirl around.

A petite woman beamed at them. She had curly red hair cut in a bob, and rectangular glasses. Her eyes were a warm brown. Her skin was suntanned with smile lines, and she held a large cardboard box in her arms.

"I'm sorry, who…?" Cameron tentatively wondered.

"Mrs. Levin," she replied in a brisk German accent. "I just moved here and saw you required a librarian."

Tara leaped to her feet. "Let me hold that!" She quickly removed the box from Mrs. Levin's arms, buckling slightly at the unexpected weight.

"Thank you dear," Mrs. Levin smiled, removing the key from her pocket. "Do you two mind helping me?"

A few minutes later they'd set up Mrs. Levin's desk. Miss T had very little in way of personal possessions, so it was sadly easy.

"May I ask your names?" Mrs. Levin was straightforward.

"I'm Cameron, and this is Tara," Cameron introduced them.

"Cameron and Tara!" Mrs. Levin said brightly. "I'll make sure to remember!"

An awkward pause filled the air as Mrs. Levin checked the office supplies.

"Why did you move here?" Tara asked.

The older woman chuckled. "Retirement!" She stated cheerfully. "Also medical leave. The doctor said that I had to spend quiet time in fresh air."

Cameron blinked. "Oh, sorry…we didn't mean to pry."

"No prying!" Mrs. Levin reassured him. "Either way, now I'm here."

Tara paused. "Where'd you move from?" Her curiosity was getting in the way of her politeness, and she had to restrain herself from interrogating the older woman.

The new librarian placed a photograph at a different angle. "Hm? I was living near London for a while, but I was born in Germany," Mrs. Levin shared. "If you teenagers are worried about my credentials, I can assure you I know a lot about the Dewey Decimal System!"

Tara's phone buzzed as Cameron began questioning when the library would be reopened.

GET BACK NOW. BELLA'S AWAKE.

The text from Seb jolted her into action.

"Sorry, gotta jet," she apologized to the others, giving Cameron a quick hug. "I'll be back soon!"

Mrs. Levin winked. "Don't worry! Me and this nice boy will talk about books until you return." She leaned in close with an exaggerated stage whisper. "He's very good looking!"

She couldn't help but laugh. "I know. Have fun!"

Cameron waved before returning to his conversation with the new librarian. Tara sped away, smiling.